Crystalline Manganese Carbonate a Green Catalyst for Biodiesel Production

摘要

Crystalline manganese carbonate was found to be a versatile green, non corrosive and environmental friendly catalyst for transesterification of vegetable oils. Its use as catalyst in the transesterification process involving methanol and vegetable oils (palm, rapeseed, groundnut, coconut and caster oils) resulted in a conversion rate of 80% - 95% in the production of biodiesel. The chemical composition of the obtained biodiesel was studied by GC-MS analysis and showed the presence of linoleic, oleic, palmitic, and stearic acids methyl esters to be the major compounds. Manganese carbonate in comparison with other solid catalysts was found to decrease the reaction time and temperature concomitant with an increase of biodiesel yield. Finally, the effect of various parameters including methanol quantity, catalyst amount, reaction time and temperatures on the production of biodiesel was investigated.